The Rockets drew negative coverage last week when they fired head coach Kevin McHale amid a 4-7 start, but the Clippers are proving to be just as messy. Reserve forward Josh Smith could be heard screaming at a coach after losing to the Raptors Sunday night, which marked their seventh loss in nine games.
Loud commotion inside the Clipper locker room. Can hear it through the walls.
— Dan Woike (@DanWoikeSports) November 22, 2015
The Clippers, at 6-7, are off to their worst start since trading for Chris Paul 2011, and their two main offseason acquisitions, Smith and guard Lance Stephenson, have had trouble assimilating. So far Smith is playing fewer than 15 minutes per game, while Stephenson is playing 18 minutes, six fewer than coach Doc Rivers’ son Austin Rivers. Veteran pickup Paul Pierce is averaging a measly 5.3 points in 22 minutes.
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Worst of all, the Clippers are barely using center DeAndre Jordan on the offensive end, when Jordan famously agreed to sign with the Mavericks this offseason before reneging at the last minute. The main reason Jordan was going to join Dallas was their promise to feature him more offensively. His scoring and rebounding are the same, but the Clippers’ results are worse, and his role has not changed.
The Clippers are in worse shape than the Rockets are, simply because they have far more question marks. The problems for Houston are identifiable; there’s growing evidence James Harden and Ty Lawson do not mesh, which can be solved by having Lawson head up the second unit. Their larger problem is Harden’s inefficiency and lapsed defense, which should self-correct over the course of the season.
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Los Angeles is not only struggling with defense – they are 22nd in opponent points per game (104.5) – they can’t figure out their rotations. Early losses are more acceptable if a team is learning about itself, but when Austin Rivers is being force fed 24 minutes a game and producing nine points and one assist, that’s called self-immolation.
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